Cape Breton Screaming Eagles forward Shaun Miller is excited for a new opportunity with a new team. The 18-year-old from Enfield, N.S., was acquired from the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada as part of the Drake Batherson deal. - T.J. Colello

SYDNEY, N.S. — At first, it came as a shock.

But as Shaun Miller let the news sink in that he’d been traded to the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles as part of the biggest deal of the holiday trade period, the Enfield, N.S., native was excited for the new opportunity closer to home.

“As the day went on, the excitement grew in me and I was excited to come home to my home province and start a new stepping stone in my career in a new place,” said the 18-year-old forward. “It’s been nothing shy of amazing so far.”

Miller was acquired from the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada along with 17-year-old defenceman Kyle Havlena, 16-year-old forward prospect Félix Lafrance and a first-round pick in 2020 for Batherson and a sixth-round selection in 2018.

He has a goal and an assist in his first four games with Cape Breton, and has 13 points (three goals, 10 assists) in 22 games.

“I’ve been put on young teams before and this is a younger group, but a very mature group as a whole,” he said. “I see a bright future and nothing less than a great season ahead of us and on to the future.”

Miller comes from a hockey family. His grandfather, Windsor, N.S. native Randy Miller, had a long minor pro career, skating mainly with the Springfield Indians and Springfield Kings in the 1960s and early 1970s. His father, Rick, was a high-level player growing up as well and Shaun’s older brother, 20-year-old Derek, also strapped on the skates.

“After everything that’s happened in my career — I guess the latest thing was the trade to a new organization — I get to make a couple of phone calls to my father and my grandfather,” he said. “My grandfather takes me through the steps and tells me what it’s going to be like.

“Whenever I need a helping hand or just to talk to somebody, it’s nice to have someone who knows the game like I know it and somebody who’s been through it all.”

The Screaming Eagles are coming off a productive three-game road trip through Quebec. They started with a convincing 6-1 victory over the Quebec Remparts on Thursday followed by a 4-1 triumph over the Chicoutimi Saguenéens on Friday. Sunday, the club fell 5-3 to the Baie-Comeau Drakkar.